Brett Yormark on his comment about Texas: 'You speak to your crowd and you have fun'

Last week, Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark raised eyebrows when he told Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire to “take care of business” against Texas this year. That game will be the Longhorns’ last as a member of the Big 12 before leaving for the SEC in a move that led to major changes around college athletics.

More than a week later, Yormark addressed those comments.

During a press conference ahead of this week’s Colorado vs. TCU matchup, Yormark said he meant it all in good fun considering he was speaking to a Texas Tech audience. He made it clear he was catering to the crowd as he tried to build excitement about the upcoming football season.

“The only thing I would say about my comment last week is I learned many years ago, you speak to your crowd and you have fun,” Yormark said. “And that’s what I was doing. I was speaking to the crowd at Lubbock, they were excited about the season. And I think college football’s all about having fun, and I was having fun with the fans at Texas Tech. That’s pretty much it.”

During the Aug. 23 event, Yormark confirmed he will be at that game, which will take place in Austin. He praised the Big 12’s ability to expedite Texas and Oklahoma’s move to the SEC. They weren’t supposed to depart until 2025, but the two programs came to an agreement with the Big 12 to leave a year earlier — just in time for other realignment moves and the expansion of the College Football Playoff.

Then, Yormark issued a challenge to McGuire and the Red Raiders.

“Candidly, we were able to get Texas and Oklahoma out of here early. That was a big deal for us and I think all of you,” Yormark said. “And Coach [McGuire], I’m not going to put any pressure on you, but I’m gonna be in Austin for Thanksgiving, okay? And you’d better take care of business like you did right here in Lubbock last year.”

The Big 12 is preparing to undergo major changes next year after Oklahoma, Texas depart

This year, the Big 12 will compete with 14 teams ahead of Oklahoma and Texas’ departures. After they shared their plans to leave, the conference added four schools — BYU, Cincinnati, Houston and UCF — to help account for those losses.

Then, this summer, the Big 12 added four more programs to take it to 18 teams next season. Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah are all coming aboard next year in what Brett Yormark called a “dream scenario” for expansion.

Because of those pickups, he confirmed expansion is over — at least, for now.

“I did have conversations with UConn and Gonzaga,” Yormark said on the Marchand and Ourand Sports Media Podcast. “Unfortunately, you know, things didn’t work out only because the dream scenario unfolded for us. So, those conversations are no longer. I’m a big admirer of both, those programs are fantastic for all the right reasons.

“But right now, you know, I’m focused on the transition of those four (schools) in right now. And also, how do I leverage the fact that (we have a) 16-team league in 10 states with 90 million people in four different time zones? So that’s my focus right now.”